Sweeter Oranges

?A new standard for measuring the sweetness of California oranges is hoped to significantly improve eating quality along with improving total orange sales.

Following seven years of consumer research, an all-new California Standard for oranges has been rolled out and will be the standard by which all California navel oranges will now be measured in an effort to deliver a better navel orange eating experience as well as better overall sales results. In the past, California navel oranges were held to meet a measurement that the industry now says was an ineffective predictor of eating quality, and the new California Standard will instead measure oranges by their balance between sweetness and acidity which is thought to be a much better indicator of overall sweetness and taste. The new standard is hoped to significantly improve eating quality along with improving total orange sales, without impacting their availability in any way.

The new California Standard was arrived at through a combination of consumer research conducted by California Citrus Mutual, the California Citrus Research Board, the University of California and USDA/Agricultural Research Service. After conducting many taste studies that showed measuring sweetness and acidity is a better predictor of orange flavor than the previous sugar-to-acid measuring ratios, the new Standard found support from the California citrus industry and was then adopted into regulation by the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

Following extensive consumer-based research, the development and adoption of The California Standard was based on the following key points:

• Competition in the produce aisle has increased and fresh fruit consumption has increased, while at the same time fresh orange consumption has dropped.
• Early season navel oranges have low customer satisfaction.
• A positive eating experience would cause 65% of consumers to eat more navel oranges.
• The California Standard replaces 35% of less-tasty fruit with fruit that better meets consumer sweetness expectations
• The California Standard shows a 90%+ accuracy in determining consumer purchase intent.

Joel Nelsen, president of California Citrus Mutual showed his enthusiasm for the new Standard when he said in a press release that “We, as an industry, took it upon ourselves to do the research, and find a solution that will benefit the grower and the consumer. The California Standard is that solution. With The California Standard we can deliver good fruit at the first delivery, shorten the repurchase cycle and improve sales. It’s all about better fruit at the right time.”